OTLN Converter

Extract text from Opal outlines (OTLN)


Drop or upload your .OTLN file
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How to extract text from your OTLN file

  1. Click the "Select File" button above, and choose your OTLN file.
  2. You’ll see a preview, if available.
  3. Click the "Convert file to..." button to extract text information.

Convert OTLN to another file type

To convert OTLN outlines to another format, you need Opal or other Text software.

Convert a file to OTLN

To convert other file formats to the "Opal Outline File" file type, you need software like Opal or a similar tool.


About OTLN files

A .OTLN file is an Opal Outline File created by Opal, a dedicated outliner application for macOS developed by A Sharp, LLC. These files are typically used by writers, researchers, and project managers to store hierarchical lists, structured notes, ideas, and rich-text elements like checkboxes and inline graphics. Because .OTLN is a proprietary format tightly locked to the macOS ecosystem, it poses significant cross-platform compatibility issues. Users without access to a Mac, or those who do not wish to purchase a specialized legacy application, will find the data effectively trapped. Attempting to open the file in standard text editors usually reveals a jumble of binary code with only fragments of readable text. For long-term accessibility, we recommend converting these files to Outline Processor Markup Language (OPML), which perfectly preserves the collapsible hierarchy of your topics across modern outliners. Alternatively, converting to Rich Text Format (RTF) or Plain Text (TXT) ensures the content is readable on any device, though specific layout features might be stripped. Since this format is closed, standard online converters often fail to process it properly.

Convert.Guru analyzes your OTLN file, detects the exact format, and lets you read the text inside.


FAQ

If you want to convert OTLN file to CSV, JSON, XML, YAML, YML, TOML, INI, CFG, CONF, DAT, DB or SQL, you can use Opal or similar software from the "Hierarchical Notes and Outlines" category. In the File menu, look for Save As… or Export….

To convert DBF, XML, SQLITE, XLSX, SQL, TSV, ACCDB, YAML, MDB, CSV, ODS or JSON files to OTLN, try Opal or another comparable tool in the "Hierarchical Notes and Outlines" category.



The OTLN Converter Story

The history of Convert.Guru began over 25 years ago in California with Tom Simondi’s file-format database. A former contributor to Space Shuttle development and a software pioneer of the 1980s, Simondi established a trusted resource for file type analysis that was even referenced by Microsoft Windows XP. Today, we use modern technology to process and convert thousands of file formats while continually improving our OTLN converter.